When browsing Home Base Holidays home Swap vacation offers, you will see a section, Meet the Member, usually with a photo of the member or their family. As swapping homes is such a personal arrangement between members, it's really useful to be able to 'see' a member you are contacting to suggest a swap, and to have a little background information on their jobs, interests, family members and any special needs they may have for a good home swap match (click View full profile for member information). Although providing detailed information about your home and area in the main description is of primary importance, do give some thought to the profile section too.

The following is one such profile description. I think you'll agree that member, Carol, has provided some really interesting background information so that you should feel that you are already know her when contacting her to suggest an exchange:

'Thanks for visiting my home, albeit, at a distance, my pleasure to swap homes with you. I am currently a writer (fiction, non-fiction) and film PR and have been variously a journalist for many years specialising in food-related topics as well as a critic. Originally from Canada, I have lived as a child and adult mostly in Europe (Czechoslovakia as was, Switzerland, Denmark, France) and enjoy travelling either solo or with friends and family - and visiting off the beaten-track places such as the West Bank and parts of Nubian Egypt. I am keen on shorter over longer stays as I continue to work part-time but I am flexible, particularly for long haul. I prefer where possible to take the train over flying as the art of slow travel is very appealing but travel to Canada/US and other destinations can only be undertaken by air, at least to the main destination. The simpler the better is how I travel and finding out about new cultures, new languages as does music (violinist).'

Carol  has also given a detailed description of her home, a townhouse dating back to the 18th century, located by the Roman Walls in Chichester city centre in West Sussex, southern England:

'My home is remarkably quiet despite being in the centre of Chichester. The terraced house is situated on a residential cul de sac which overlooks the magnificent historic Priory Park with its Guildhall and Roman Walls.'

View full details of Carol's home swap offer in Chichester. She includes excellent information on the many attractions (including the famous theatre) in the lively small city of Chichester which is close enough to London for day trips.

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